I'm a Connecticut Yankee when it comes to Thanksgiving. You have to do the bird and you have to prepare it the way your family always has. This was quickly embraced by my Mexican family- who love all things food and who really hadnothing to do on Thanksgiving day anyway. So we do the whole traditional feast every year, right down to the cream puffs. It's the only day they use a fork and knife because they want to, not just because "Gregorio" looks at you funny when you eat Stuffing and Gravy off your plate with a tortilla instead of a fork.
Last year I did two Turkeys. One traditional Woooosh: Oven Roasted with Sausage Stuffing, and the second I did with the same stuffing, but it was on cooked on the BBQ.
To BBQ a turkey you need to "butterfly" it so it lays flat. On a turkey that means using a meat cleaver or a serious pair of poultry shears.
Then you insert the stuffing between the skin and the meat with your hands. Even the legs and thighs get stuffed.
An 18 pound turkey, butterflied and stuffed, covered the complete surface of my gas grill. You leave the cover down and let it roast slowly. The smell was amazing (I used our own Rosemary as an aromatic).
I don't know if I would do it again, it was a messy process... but it was enjoyed by everyone. The stuffing keeps the meat very moist.
... and- we still had the "original style" bird for the purists.
I didn't realize this was posted. Great story! And, great idea! Although it does seem very labor intensive. You have to try the deep-fried turkey-a'la-white trash this year! Very, very yummy, not as labor intensive, and, if done properly, very exciting and dangerous! Happy Thanksgiving!
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